Poland Seminary facts for kids

Poland Seminary, originally called Poland Academy, was the name for several schools that operated in the town of Poland, Ohio. These schools played an important role in the education of many young people in the area.

The First School: Poland Academy (1830-1845)

The very first Poland Academy started in 1830. It was founded by a Presbyterian minister named Bradley. The school was small, held in a room above a local general store. Students learned subjects like English, classical languages (like Latin and Greek), philosophy, and literature.

After five years, a man named Lynch took over the school. He moved it to a new location on a street that would later be called College Street. However, this first Academy closed its doors in 1845 because it didn't have enough money to keep going.

The Second Era of Schools (1849-1909)

New Academies Emerge

In 1849, new schools opened in Poland, Ohio. Barnabus F. Lee started Lee's Girls Academy on College Street. At the same time, the Presbyterians opened a new Academy specifically for boys.

In 1854, Lee's Girls Academy became an official school called the Poland Female College. It moved into a bigger building. The next year, in 1855, the Boys' Academy building unfortunately burned down and was never rebuilt. The Female College then moved into an even newer, larger brick building on College Street.

Even though it was called the "Female College," it seems that boys also started attending this school around this time. Later, the school began using the older name, Poland Academy, again. Sometimes, it was also called the Poland Institute.

Law and Medical Schools

For a short time, other schools also operated in Poland. The Ohio Law College, sometimes known as the Poland Law School, opened in 1855 in the building the Female College had left. However, it struggled to find enough money and moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1859. A Poland Medical College also briefly operated on the third floor of the same building but closed around the same time.

Famous Students and Teachers

In the late 1850s, a young man named William McKinley attended the Academy. He graduated in 1859 and later became the 25th President of the United States.

By 1862, the Academy was having money problems again. A new group of leaders took over and decided to rename the school Poland Seminary. They paid off the old school's debts. But by 1871, the school was once again short on cash.

The Mahoning Presbytery, a church group, then took control. They ran the school as the Poland Seminary School or Poland Union Seminary. It was a Christian school that taught students at a high school and junior college level. A dormitory was built for boys who came from out of town, but girls had to find places to live and eat in nearby private homes. From 1881 to 1883, a famous journalist named Ida Tarbell was the head teacher there.

The End of an Era

In 1895, parts of the old school building started to fall apart. The rest of the building was torn down, and a new one was built on the same foundation. The seminary continued to face challenges.

Finally, on June 21, 1909, the school property was sold to Poland's city school district. A special condition of the sale was that the high school built there would keep the name Poland Seminary. Today, that school is known as Poland Seminary High School.

Notable People from Poland Seminary

Many important people attended or taught at Poland Seminary over the years.

• A. E. Lee – He became a state legislator in Ohio.
• William McKinley – He was the 25th President of the United States.
• Ida Tarbell – She was a famous journalist known for investigating big businesses.